The people depicted are the Huicholes who are an indigenous people from Mexico. Despite the recent creation of the artwork, the people shown still live lives which are more simple than what the average Westerners is used to. The people are photographed with their backs facing away from the camera. Santiago wished to document the people by taking their pictures, but they believe that if their photos are taken, then their souls will be captured.
The artist chose to have every photo be in black and white. This creates a unifying effect. No one person stands out over another. It connects the piece as one group of people rather than a large number of individuals. If it were in color, then the eye would be drawn to one person over another based on the clothes worn. This means that in order to study further the individuals, one must observe the people at random without bias. This strengthens the artist's goal in documenting the Huicholes. It provides a comprehensive collection of random Huicholes.
The work is showing the culture and, to a point, the religious beliefs of the Huicholes. The clothing worn teaches about their lives. The clothing is that of farmers. It captures their way of life while still protecting and representing their religious values when not showing their faces. I believe that the artist took and collected the photos so that he could save the Huicholes' way of life pictorially. The use of equalizing black and white and wide array of subjects create an index. The artist made a collection of people to be studied and appreciated. The curator chose to include this work because it contains a history of indigenous Mexicans. It tied in with the history and appreciation of Latin American culture. This work will continue to be useful because it is a documentation of a people. Future generations may use this to understand better who the Huicholes were.
I appreciate that you thought of cultural and societal values- nice work!
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